Government to investigate graduated driving licences for new drivers

Lower speed limits and a night time curfew could be imposed on young drivers to cut road accidents

Words ByClaire Evans

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9 Feb 2018 14:07Last updated: 9 Feb 2018 16:53

Theresa May has confirmed that the Department for Transport will look into the proposal of a graduated licence scheme for newly qualified drivers.

The pledge came during Prime Minister’s Question Time, in response to a question from Labour MP Jenny Chapman.
Graduated driving licences have already been introduced in Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and some parts of the USA.

Restrictions placed on drivers include banning them from driving between certain night-time hours, limiting the number of passengers they can carry and requiring their cars to display a special new driver plate for the first 24 months.

At present newly qualified British drivers only have a lower alcohol drink-driving limit and a lower limit of six penalty points to be disqualified from driving in the first 24 months.

It's not yet clear what restrictions could be put on new drivers in the UK. While some road safety organisations belive a night-time cufew would help, car insurance provide Marmalade believes making 'black box' insurance mandatory for the first two years would be a better solution.

"On average, our drivers who use telematics are three times less likely to have an accident in their first six months behind the wheel compared to the national average," stated Marmalade CEO Crispin Moger.

The potential changes to licensing are being called for because young drivers are far more likely to be involved in road accidents than other drivers – one in four is involved in an accident in their first two years behind the wheel and 400 young people die in road accidents every year.

In fact, road accidents are the biggest killer of young people in the UK, claiming the lives of more under-25s than knife crime or drugs.

And the number of people dying on our roads is rising - just under 1800 people were killed and more than 24,000 people were seriously injured on our roads in 2016.

Road safety organisations have been calling for graduated licences for some time. Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart director of policy and research, said: “Too many young drivers pass the practical test unprepared for the road so any graduated licence scheme must focus on building experience in all traffic conditions.

Driving test changes 2018 - here's everything you need to know

The biggest killer of young men and women aged under 24 is car accidents. One in five newly qualified drivers will have a crash within six months of passing their test, and although 17-19-year-old drivers represent only 1.5% of the UK’s motorists, they are involved in 12% of accidents causing death or serious injury on our roads.

To try to reduce these shocking statistics, the Government announced a shake-up in the format of the practical driving test and the skills it tests in April 2017, and those changes came into force on 4 December.

Four changes were introduced, including doubling the length of the independent driving section of the test from 10 to 20 minutes and a requirement for candidates to follow directions from a sat-nav system. Together, these represent the most significant changes to the driving test since the introduction of the theory test in 1996.

What are the new driving test changes?

A number of road safety organisations were involved in the consultation held to help shape the modernisation of the driving test. We asked them why each change had been chosen.

1. Twice as much independent driving

The longer independent driving section involves the candidate driving towards a specified destination without following ‘turn-by-turn’ directions given by the examiner. It’s been extended from 10 to 20 minutes, and now accounts for around half the duration of the practical test.

Neil Greig, director of policy and research for IAM Roadsmart, which offers an advanced driver course as well as a number of short, skill-specific online and practical modules, says: “The most common criticism of the old practical test was that all too often new drivers learned by rote on the same local roads near the test centre. The introduction of the extended independent driving section means candidates must learn on a wider variety of roads and think more about their driving.”

2. Follow directions from a sat-nav

During the independent driving section, candidates are asked to follow directions from a sat-nav system.

The examiner will supply the sat-nav and programme in a route. The RAC says the change “better reflects modern driving and encourages the safe use of sat-nav by newly qualified drivers”.

3. New reversing manoeuvres

Two traditional test manoeuvres – the three-point turn and reversing around a corner – have been dropped in favour of three new reversing manoeuvres. Candidates will be asked to do one of the following: parallel park at the side of the road, park in a bay (either by reversing in and driving out or by driving in and reversing out) or pull up on the right-hand side of the road, reverse for two car lengths and then rejoin the traffic.

The RAC says the old manoeuvre testing was “formulaic and usually took place on quieter roads, so it wasn't characteristic of real-world driving”, and that “the new reversing manoeuvres test the competence and safety of learners in situations that mirror those they will encounter after passing their test”.

However, learners should still be taught the old skills, the AA believes. “AA and BSM instructors coach learners in a range of things
that will benefit them as fully qualified drivers, not just the skills they need to pass the test,” it says. “So we’re encouraging our advanced driving instructors to continue to teach manoeuvres, such as three-point turns and reversing around a corner, to broaden the learner’s experience, confidence and ability.”

4. Answer a 'show me, tell me' question while driving

The verbal ‘show me, tell me’ question that examiners previously asked at the start of the test has been moved to the driving section. The aim of the change is to assess a driver’s ability to carry out a safety task, such as washing the windscreen or using the wipers, while on the move.

While the RAC had some reservations about this because it could be distracting for the driver, it concluded that it is acceptable as long as the tester only asks the question when it is least likely to pose a safety risk. Each question should be prefaced with the words “when it is safe to do so”.